Paul Michel Lion III *65

Mike died Nov. 3, 2024, in Gainesville, Va.

Born in Washington, D.C., Dec. 7, 1934, he graduated from West Point in 1956. After serving in Germany, in 1959 Mike worked briefly at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. Then he earned a Ph.D. in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Princeton in 1965. After a postdoc year, he joined Princeton’s aerospace engineering faculty, initially teaching courses in optimization theory and stability theory while serving as principal investigator for a NASA contract on optimum space trajectories. In 1974, he became a full professor of civil engineering.

Mike decided to apply his research to practical optimization challenges that would directly benefit people, and in 1972 developed a graduate program in transportation at Princeton, jointly supported by the School of Engineering and Applied Science, the Woodrow Wilson School, and the School of Architecture and Urban Planning.

Mike left the University in 1979 to put his skills to practical use. He served the U.S. Railway Association and several businesses. His final post was vice president of Washington operations for ALK Associates, a firm producing software for the transportation industry.

Predeceased by his son William, Mike is survived by his wife, Jane; sons David, James, and Thomas; granddaughter Alexa; and grandson Nicolas.

Graduate alumni memorials are prepared by the APGA.